In this episode of “Three Minute Thursdays,” 8th & Walton CEO Jeff Clapper discusses Walmart’s latest tools for marketplace sellers and how they can help suppliers expand their reach, optimize product listings, and stay competitive.
Lainie: Walmart has announced that it is launching these incredible new marketplace tools. What is the significance of this for marketplace sellers?
And suppliers—how can they best leverage these new tools?
Jeff: I think, broadly, Walmart has really aggressive goals. They have stated plans for expansion across the assortment and in general merchandise. They’ve shared really aggressive growth goals over the next few years, and these are all capabilities that will help Walmart achieve those goals.
These are just additional tools and functionality for suppliers to help support that. From the perspective of a 1P or omni supplier—who is both in stores and in fulfillment centers specifically—I think there are a couple of key points for these suppliers to keep in mind.
The first is that your shelf now has an extended aisle. Essentially, think of it as a floor model and a QR code. If someone sees a washing machine in the store and thinks, “This is what I want,” the store doesn’t necessarily carry inventory of all those washing machines. But you can have those sent to your house, select your model and everything else, and map out delivery.
Basically, that QR code and in-store touchpoint expose more .com assortment. So, assume that shoppers will compare your 1P item to marketplace alternatives while they’re standing in front of the item at the shelf. Actions on that would be: audit your top 10 SKUs on the .com pages and review price packs.
Upgrade content and value claims where marketplace lookalikes are the strongest. Bring a monthly extended aisle competitive snapshot to your merchant. Those are just examples related to the extended aisle capability. Next, speed matters—digitally and operationally, expanded next-day coverage raises shopper expectations across the board.
So, what can you do about this if you’re running a small 3P product line routed through Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS)? Use WFS for speed while keeping your DC flow focused on your core business via 1P. Use that performance data—maybe most importantly—to support modular promo asks you’re doing on Marketplace with your 3P items. You want to be able to show you’ve got the operational capability, speed, and sales data to back up recommendations to take product into the stores and FCs.
And the last point of significance: protect the brand before you fuel demand. As more marketplace items appear in the in-store journey, unauthorized, messy listings can undercut your aisle price architecture. Register and actively manage your brand portal with Walmart. Clean up rogue listings and standardize images and titles before you add Walmart Connect media or pitch new variants. Just make sure that your brand is strong across all fronts.
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